Active learning ideas
This topic tracks the evolution of the UK education system through various legislative changes. Students examine the shift from the tripartite system of 1944 to the comprehensive ideal, and finally to the modern era of marketisation and privatisation introduced by the 1988 Education Reform Act and subsequent policies like Academies and Free Schools.
Activity 01
In small groups, students are assigned a specific era (e.g., 1944, 1988, 1997, 2010). They must create a visual 'impact map' showing the key policy, its intended goal, and its actual effect on social inequality.
How did the 1988 Education Reform Act change schools?
Activity 02
Divide the class into 'Pro-Market' (New Right) and 'Anti-Market' (Marxist/Social Democrat) teams. They must debate whether league tables and open enrolment improve standards or simply lead to 'cream-skimming' of the best students.
What is the impact of marketisation and privatisation?
Activity 03
Students consider whether a single test at age 11 is a fair way to determine a child's future. They share their thoughts with a partner, focusing on the concepts of 'parity of esteem' and 'social mobility'.
How have policies attempted to tackle educational inequality?
A few notes on teaching this unit
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
Comprehensive schools ended all educational inequality.
While comprehensives removed the 11-plus in most areas, inequality continued through internal 'streaming'. Using a 'before and after' comparison activity helps students see that changing the school's name didn't necessarily change the internal processes that disadvantage certain groups.
Marketisation only benefits the government.
The New Right argues marketisation benefits parents by giving them 'choice'. However, sociologists like Ball argue this is a 'myth of parentocracy' because middle-class parents have more 'capital' to navigate the system. A role play of a school admissions meeting can help students see how 'choice' works differently for different classes.
Methods used in this brief
The Role and Functions of the Education System
Exploring functionalist, Marxist, and feminist perspectives on the role of education in society.
8 methodologies
Differential Educational Achievement
Analysing how social class, gender, and ethnicity impact educational attainment in the UK.
8 methodologies
Processes within Schools
Investigating labelling, self-fulfilling prophecies, and the formation of pupil subcultures.
8 methodologies